Rapha Women’s Pro Team Winter Tights

The Rapha Women's Pro Team Winter Tights provide good levels of warmth and weather protection, together with a comfortable chamois pad. The bib strap and buckle design for easy loo stops is straightforward and effective too. Fantastic quality, but pricey with it.

Designed for the worst of winter, these full length bib tights have plenty of features that show great attention to detail for the needs of women riding in cold conditions. As well as being made with a tough but lightweight three-layer fabric, including windproof and water-repellent panels at the front and Thermoroubaix fabric at the back, the broad stretch straps are designed to sit around the outside of the bust, and a heavy duty magnetic clasp at the back allows for pee stops without having to strip off.

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The tights are designed to have a sleek race fit, and thanks to the windproof fabric they take a bit of wriggling to get into, though they aren't over-snug for their size. Rapha says  they are designed to be snug and that those who are borderline on sizing might want to size up, but I felt no need, with the size large tested being fine for my generous 14. (It's not me in the photos, that's Tass who's a couple of inches taller than me and closer to a size 12.) 

Length in the leg will be ample for riders taller than my 5ft 5in frame, but wrinkling was not a problem, although I suspect shorter riders might find it so. There was a little fabric left over in terms of length, but it didn't cause any comfort issues.

The bib straps are soft and comfortable, and because they sit around the outside of the bust they should easily accommodate a range of sizes.

Given the windproof panels on these, I was quite pleasantly surprised by the ease of getting them on and adjusted. They needed little in the way of tugging and stayed put very well.

I also had no issues with binding on the legs once on, and pedalling felt similar to more pliable non-wind resistant tights, even in hilly conditions that leave your quads on the pumped side.

The levels of warmth were perfect on days hovering around zero, and they saw off freezing winds. The water repellency is enough to deal with road water and reasonably heavy rain, and my legs have stayed warm and dry throughout testing, with no sweatiness or discomfort even when working hard. These are aimed at demanding riders and it shows. No matter what I threw at them, they delivered on comfort and just the right amount of protection for UK winters.

The chamois pad looked on the basic side when I first tried them, but I soon found it to be pliable and comfortable yet pleasantly unobtrusive. It's one of those pads you forget about, which says a lot.

Aside from the great fit, excellent levels of warmth and ride comfort, and protection from all but the very worst weather, the major draw of these bib tights is the clever drop seat design that allows for easier loo stops, the bane of every female rider's winter. Rather than having to bare it all, the magnetic buckle design on these simply unclips and allows for the super-stretchy yet tough fabric at the lumbar area to be pulled down. The buckle is easily reached from below a jacket and jersey, and just about workable without removing gloves if that's important to you.

It's eye-openingly easy and straightforward, and makes winter rides much less stressful – and less chilly – though I did have a small issue with tucking my baselayer top back in again afterwards. The fabric of the waist area is quite slippery and snug, and I had to take my gloves off at that point, but it was a quick job, so not disastrous.

There's no getting away from the fact that £210 is a lot of money for a pair of bib tights, but if you consider the protection and features on offer, compared with others they're not completely off the wall.

Castelli's Nano Flex Pro 2 W bib tights are more protective and £20 less at £190, but they don't have any sort of pee-stop technology, and an extra £20 feels like a good investment to me for the ease of the Raphas in this arena.

The Assos Habu Tights Laalalai S7s are more expensive at £235, as are Rapha's own Women's Shadow Souplesse Tights at £270, which Janine tested in 2019, but they're also more protective.

> Read more road.cc reviews of women’s cycling tights

You can buy very good bib tights for less, like Castelli's Velocissima bib tights (£120) and Iris's Signature Winter Bib Tight Light (£135), but neither are weather-resistant designs, and are better suited to dry chilly days than deep winter. The Castelli tights have no pee-stop tech either, though the Iris ones use a similar magnetic clasp concept to Rapha's. Sportful's Bodyfit Pro Women's Bibtights (£150) do offer some weather protection, but not as much as the Rapha's.

Conclusion

Although the Rapha Pro Team Winter Tights are pricey, bearing in mind the features, protection, warmth, comfort and that handy pull-down design, they are a good investment if you have the dosh. They offer excellent quality, comfort and a really good design, together with a sleek silhouette and low weight that'll please competitive riders. Definitely an investment, but a worthwhile one that should last.

Verdict

Top notch winter tights offering comfort, protection, warmth and easy pee-stops – expensive, but worth the investment